More than four years after the high-profile death of Keroche Breweries heiress Tecra Mungai, an inquest has dismissed her boyfriend Omar Lali’s defence as unreliable and accused him of causing her death.
Senior Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul noted that Tecra and Mr Lali were the only ones in the house in Lamu on April 23, 2020, when she allegedly fell and injured herself.
However, the magistrate dismissed claims that Tecra fell on the stairs and sustained head injuries that led to her death.
Ms Abdul said the post-mortem and medical reports presented to her showed the injuries were inconsistent with a fall as they were severe and damaged her brain.
“It is my finding that Omar Lali is criminally responsible for the murder of Tecra. Therefore, this court recommends to the DPP (Renson Ingonga) that a charge be laid under Section 157 of the Constitution,” Ms Abdul said.
But the court said the reports and testimony of doctors contradicted the claims and showed that the daughter of Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja, whose family owns Keroche Breweries, was hit with a blunt object.
Testifying at the inquest, chief government pathologist Dr Johansen Oduor said there were skull fractures that were unlikely to have been caused by a single blow and ruled out a fall from the stairs as the cause of the injuries.
Mr Lali’s brother, Quswai Lali, told how he rushed to the flat and allegedly found her lying on the stairs facing up.
Mr Quswai said he found Tecra unconscious and tried unsuccessfully to administer first aid before they rushed her to a nearby dispensary and she was transferred to King Fahad Hospital.
The magistrate said that the doctors’ reports indicated that Tecra had sustained serious injuries, including a fractured skull, which were not consistent with a fall.
Tecra was flown to Nairobi but died on 2 May 2020.
The magistrate said there were inconsistencies in Mr Lali’s account of what happened on the day in question when compared with the findings of the post-mortem examination and the doctor’s reports.
Witnesses who testified at the inquest claimed that Lali used charms to lure women.
Tecra’s elder brother, James Karanja, told the magistrate how he was shocked when he first met Mr Lali in 2019 because their sister was very protective of the man.
Mrs Karanja also recounted how her daughter used to send money to Mr Lali, sometimes as much as Sh100,000 in a month.
Other witnesses also told of constant fights between Mr Lali and Tecra.
Mr Lali was due to be charged with murder in 2020, but DPP Noordin Haji withdrew the charge and called for an inquest to determine the cause of Tecra’s death.
The court was told that only two people were present at the time of the incident.
The court found that the alleged fall could not have caused such severe brain damage as was found in the post-mortem report.
